A PlayStation PS4 now costs around $350, whereas, in the 1990s for a PS1, it would have cost close to $800 (adjusted for inflation)

Taxis

There used to be only Taxi Cab options available with each ride costing above $15 to $20 for a distance around 10km

Grab, Ryde, ComfortDelgro app has changed the scene drastically opening up a mass of drivers and now costs between $10 to $15 for the same distances above

Plane tickets

Plane tickets have been on the decline ever since technology (Skyscanner, comparison sites) and Budget Low-frill carriers stepped into the game

Used to cost between $1500 to $2000 for even short range flights in the past, but now cost at most between $300 to $500 for the same distances

Hotel prices

Hotels overseas often constituted to one of the biggest travel expenses in the past, but also similar to plane tickets, have been on the decline since technology stepped in

Used to cost at least $300 a night in a decent hotel, now with Airbhb, we are able to book an accomodation with less than $100!

Newspapers & Books

Used to cost between $1.50 for a set of newspapers, now on social media, they are free and also allowing access to a broad network of various worldwide coverage (eg. CNN, BBC etc) for a grand total of $0 (FREE)

Books used to cost between $10 – $20 for a new one at POPULAR, but these days with e-readers like Kindle and mobile phones, digital copies can be easily bought for around $5

Music

Remember the old days of buying CDs of Backstreet Boys, Westlife, and MayDay? Yup even if you wanted to listen to one song, you had to buy the whole album costing you around $20

Now a monthly subscription for Spotify or Apple Music costs in the range of $10 per month but gives you access to the entire world’s collection of music

Buying overseas imported goods

This is a really game-changing one. Back in the day, there were almost no options to get imported items. But with the advancements in online shopping and drop-shipping, this opened up many doors for us to get goods online.

Now it is not uncommon to use websites like Airfrov or even EZBuy to import goods bought online from US Amazon or China Taobao with shipping fees of around $5 for small items.

Brokerage fees

Those were the golden days for fund and brokerage houses. To buy a stock, you had to dial up your banker or fund manager and ask him/her to make a trade and pay hefty fees

Access to knowledge

Back in the day, I fondly remember Encyclopedia salesmen going from door to door and my parents actually bought a whole set for me

But a few years later we were searching and ‘googling’ online for things we wanted to know

The internet is the key to the future. It sounds very cliché but it is indeed very true, it’s time to leverage its power!

Conclusion

Ultimately, the world is always changing. While it is true that inflation really sucks and is picking up at a more aggressive pace, the 80s and 90s Singaporeans should also have grown up with the Internet and witness its early potential. It has shown that software democratizes and ultimately, you will have to learn to fight inflation in your own way.